Week 1

George Welly 

A01

Fight the Tower describes Dr. Valverde’s personal struggle within academe due to the discriminatory practices committed within the institution. Dr. Valverde's case is particularly unique—being a mother, woman, Vietnamese American, mentally ill, as well a refugee. A cacophony of minorities is present within Dr. Valverde and each aspect was torn down and denigrated upon her surroundings within the work environment. Within her article, Dr. Valverde manifests the discrimination placed upon Asian Americans. Despite having attributes and skills that over qualifies that of the system, the system has placed many obstacles in front of Dr. Valverde.  However what was truly interesting is that there was not only presence of discrimination upon Asian Americans, but within the Asian American community itself. This preconceived caste system quintessentially imposes superiority among ethnicities where people group as one race. Those of east asian backgrounds are seen in a higher light than smaller asian minorities coming from south and southeast Asia. This situation is only occurring because those of south and southeast asian backgrounds usually come from lower income backgrounds. Rather than fighting against one another, Asian Americans  should stand up together as one and support one another and fight this so called tower. Cooperation is necessary for change and Dr. Valverde stresses, “The truth is we are not alone; we can win. But, we still have yet to come together as a collective to demand our rights. What follows is an ever- evolving list of suggestions on how to start thinking about individual action and strategies towards positive, collective change.” (Valverde, 2013). Through Dr. Valverde’s words, it is important for the minority individual to realize that a group effort and action is the key to stirring change within the academe. If people continue to remain silent and do nothing, I truly agree that nothing will change and all will remain the same. On a final note, I personally respect Dr. Valverde’s constant persistence and will to change the norm and I find that this article indefinitely stirs the readers. Her story teaches us that we have all have voice and that we simply just need to use what we already have. 

Q: We know that Asian Americans must use their voices and stand together, but how exactly should Asian Americans fight with their voice to excite change in the system?

References:

Valverde, Kieu-Linh Caroline (2013) "Fight the Tower: A Call to Action for Women of Color in Academia," Seattle Journal for Social Justice: Vol. 12 : Iss. 2 , Article 5. 

Available at: http://digitalcommons.law.seattleu.edu/sjsj/vol12/iss2/5

Welcome to Stand Up Life(2.0). (2015). Retrieved April 4, 2017, from astanduplife.org